Defying the Impossible:A Post Doomsday Reunion Fic
by greenbloodedhobgoblinsgirl
Summary: Rose slips into a deep depression after losing the Doctor, who isn't much better as he struggles to forget her. What will happen when the TARDIS makes a discovery that could change everything, and Rose starts hearing and seeing the Doctor in her world?
1. Longing

**Author's Note**: This is my first openly submitted fanfiction. I just love the Doctor and Rose, and, though I haven't actually started season 3 of the reboot yet, I couldn't bear to leave her hanging in another dimension like that. So I wrote this reunion fic. I am aware that there are tons of these, but I just wanted to offer my own version. I try my hardest to stay true to the characters and how they are portrayed on the BBC show. I focus mostly on events that happened in seasons 1 and 2, considering that I haven't been past them yet. This fanfiction is unbetaed, but I tried to catch any errors in spelling and grammar, but, if I missed any, feel free to point them out in reviews, which are most welcome.

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><p>Rose Tyler stood on the roof of the Torchwood Institute, as she often did during her lunch break. She stared at the sky, tears falling from her brown eyes. She was silly, it had been ten months, and he hadn't found a way to get through to her. Knowing this, Rose understood that it meant he probably never would. That being said, it didn't mean she could just move on.<p>

That day on the beach at Darlig Ulv Stranden had destroyed all that she was. Nothing that anyone could say would heal her. In fact, the only reason she hadn't died that day was because Mickey, Jackie, and Pete wouldn't let her. Mickey had insisted that she would get better. That it would get easier. Something inside of her had wanted to believe him, but she knew that nothing could ever replace the time spent on the TARDIS with the Doctor. Her Doctor.

So now, she stood on the ledge, hating herself. Hating herself for not having the power to jump, and hating herself for not being able to back away and turn from what she had lost.

"Rose?" A voice said behind her. A warm, familiar voice. It was voice that used to make her smile, laugh. Now it felt like all the other whispers that fell upon her deaf ears.

Mickey Smith approached her from behind. Although he found her there more often than not, it would always disconcert him to see her on the edge. He wondered if she would ever fling herself from the tall building.

She tensed as he closed his arms around her waist. "Step back, love. Lunch break's over." He felt as though he had grown years watching her self destruct. As he pulled her against himself, he could feel the change in her weight. He knew that if he were to turn her face to his, her eyes would be shadowed and swollen from constantly spilling tears. His Rose, his strong Rose, was gone. This Rose, broken, defeated, was all that was left.

Mickey almost found himself hating the Doctor, because he had killed the spirit inside of Rose Tyler when she had lost him. But he could never truly hate the Doctor, not when he had also brought Rose to life when she was around him. She used to have so much life when she stepped out of the blue box.

"Come with me. I found something to show you."

She nodded slowly, forcing herself to turn from the ledge and the day's contemplation of suicide. She rarely spoke anymore, and her eyes were hollow. The soul once there was hidden beneath agony most wretched.

Mickey had sought a way to cheer her, at least a little, since that fateful day. What he had to show her could be just the thing. However, he had spent days contemplating whether he should reveal what he had found, because, if it didn't cheer, it could send her over the apex on which she was so precariously perched.

He led her silently through the halls of Torchwood. He had only gotten her the job here so that he could watch her every day. She didn't really complete many of the tasks put to her. Mostly, she sat, staring. It was really quite frightening to see any human being in such a state, let alone Rose.

He finally found the room he sought, and he stopped her in front of it. "You know how Torchwood collects all the artifacts from extra terrestrial encounters and archives them?"

She nodded mechanically.

He cleared his throat. "I was in here the other day, and I found some stuff. I dunno how we have it. No one else seems to know either, but, Rose, I think you'll recognize it."

There was a tiny spark in her eyes as she watched him open the door with a swipe of his key card. He led her into the vast warehouse like room and bid her to stand in her place until he got back.

Rose watched his retreating back. If she was right about what he had found, he may be able to pull her back a little.

When he returned, he carried a box. "Follow me, there something else down here."

She followed, her heart spiking at the possibility of what was inside the box.

They stopped again in front of a tellie that had been recently hooked up. There were two little folding chairs positioned in front of it. "Sit down, Rose," Mickey said gently.

She did as instructed, and he followed suit. Finally, he opened the box. "Now, you have to promise you won't have a stroke," he teased, though he knew the futility in it, and the seriousness of what he was about to show her. "But I was curious one day, a while back actually, right before you and Jackie came through-er… came to live here." Nobody spoke of the Void to Rose. The very thought led to tears and breakdowns. "Torchwood has a bit of everything, so I looked for… him. Just to see if anything came up." He shifted the box. "Remember the first time we came here? With the Cybermen?"

She nodded, waiting impatiently for him to reach his point. He continued, "Well, the only theory I've got is that he left this on the helicopter when we got lifted out." Finally, he opened the flaps of the box and withdrew a garment that sent a stinging familiarity straight to Rose's heart: a long beige trench coat.

Her hands reached of their own accord to snatch it away. Raising it gingerly, as if she would damage it were she too rough, Rose breathed in the scent of the coat. Sure enough, it smelled of soap and a musk that she associated only with the Doctor. Her knuckles went white as she clung to it, hot tears forming in her big brown eyes.

Mickey watched warily as she clutched what he had found. Suddenly, she raised her face to look at him. "Can I have it?" She asked in a small, frail voice. "Please," she pleaded when he didn't immediately answer. The tone of desperation nearly broke his heart. It was the first time she had spoken in days.

"Well, I talked to your dad. He wasn't too keen on the idea at first, but after I put up a fight, he finally agreed. So yeah, Rose. You _can_ have it."

She nodded, giving a small sob. She rose, ready to retreat with her beloved connection to the Doctor, when Mickey stopped her. "No, wait, there's something else. Sit down."

She complied so quickly that it nearly startled him. Nodding, he withdrew a black remote from the box.

"Torchwood has hidden cameras all over the city. I found this in the video archives." He clicked the tellie on and a grainy black and white video was paused on a shot of a random side street in parallel London. Mickey hit play, and Rose seized up when a familiar grinding sound filled her ears. Sure enough, she watched, eyes glued to the screen, as the TARDIS appeared on the street, the camera zooming in.

Three figures stepped out a few moments later. One was Rose, one was Mickey, and the third… was him. Rose made a choked sound as he turned towards the camera, grinning, as if he somehow knew it was there. Even in the black and white, she could see the light in his eyes. His hair stood up as if he had been running his fingers through it, the way it always looked.

The Doctor on the video came up behind her, and grasped her hand. The real Rose clenched her fist, feeling the phantom touch. The trio walked out of the frame, and the screen went black.

All the while she had watched, Mickey had watched Rose. This had been a bad idea, he realized as she began to cry, clinging to the coat. It was a bout reminiscent of the ones she had had just after he had lost her. Back when she still felt.

He moved to put his arms around her, and she clung to him as she cried great wracking sobs that rocked her thin frame.

The tears and loud sobs lasted for several minutes, and Mickey continued to hold her. When they subsided to gasps and sniffles, he pulled back, his black uniform jumper slightly darker in the spots where Rose's tears had soaked it. "Come on, love. I'll take you home."

She nodded, before allowing herself to be pulled along by her arm.

Jackie Tyler knew immediately that something had had happened at Torchwood when Mickey brought home a sullen Rose.

"What have you done to her, now? I told you that we shouldn't have forced her to work. She's traumatized." Jackie pulled her daughter tight against her, patting her blonde hair. It had since grown long again, and Rose had no desire or motivation to maintain it. "What's this, love?" She asked, reaching out to take the coat, which Rose jerked back.

"I found it in the Archives," Mickey explained. "It's his coat. Or one of them. He left it here the first time we landed in parallel London."

"What in the world were you thinking, giving her that?" Jackie snapped as she watched Rose make her way to her room. "She was starting to get better."

"Oh, nosh to that, Jackie," Mickey countered angrily. "If anything, she's worse, and you know it. I've never seen someone act like her. She's a shell. It was a gamble, but I thought that the coat might cheer her up."

"Well, we're in for a treat with her, now. Not that she's been so lively of late. I swear, I would deck that Doctor for leaving my daughter like this. It's like she's got no reason to move on."

"She hasn't really," Mickey pointed out.

"She has! She has me still, and her dad, and you, and little Gray." Gray, or Grayson, was Rose's infant brother, who was playing on the floor in front of the tellie.

Mickey sighed, "You don't seem to understand. Her whole life was with the Doctor. The second she left with him, it was like… like they were bonded forever."

Jackie sighed, lifting her son and resting him on her hip. "I just wish she would get better."

"We all do, Jackie. I think we all do."


	2. Wishing

**Author's Note**: My chapters are of inconsistent lengths. Some of them are extremely short, like this one. Thanks for sticking.

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><p>"It's so hard without you, Doctor," Rose whispered in the relative dark of her room. The sleeves of the coat were pulled around her waist as she lay on her side.<p>

She imagined that she could hear him, talking back. _"I miss you too, Rose. Every day."_

She sighed. "Have you found someone else to travel with? Or are you… alone?"

"_I've got someone here with me. But I can't connect with her._"

"Why not?" Rose asked the imaginary Doctor.

_He sighed. "I think you know it's because I miss you."_

She nodded. "I have to fight with myself to leave my bed and go on living every morning."

He tsked. _"Now, Rose, you know that you need to move on. You're a smart, capable woman. Why not do something with it?"_

"Because I'm nothing but a shopgirl," she answered.

"_No. You're so much more._"

She was silent for a moment. "I… I love you, Doctor."

There was no response. Not even her feeble mind could let her hear the words she longed for. Words she had been so close to having.

THE TARDIS:

Across the Void, in a ship that was bigger on the inside, the Doctor sat in the TARDIS's jumpseat. Across his lap lay a knitted purple jacket. He missed her, just as she did him. Rose had taken one of his hearts through the Void with her, leaving him only half completed.

Martha had been too much to handle, with her advances. Donna was home with her family, and he was alone, as he had been for the last two weeks. The TARDIS whined as she felt his sad emptiness. In an attempt to cheer her Doctor, she conjured a mental image of her favorite of the Doctor's companions, one that she, too, missed terribly.

The Doctor sighed, rising to walk around the console and down the corridor to a room at the end of the hall. When he opened it, he was accosted with the painful sight of Rose's belongings. Slipping inside, the Doctor deposited the coat on the chair in the corner, before lowering himself to the light blue bedspread. He had moved nothing in the room, and, when he had others aboard, the door remained locked, closing the pain and memories off. She had rarely used it, as they were almost always traveling to a planet that offered hospitality, but on nights like this one, where the TARDIS lay suspended in space and time, no destination keyed in, she had lain there, where the Doctor nostalgically rested his own head now.

He had tried to get back to her. Tried all that he could think off, both possible and impossible. Nothing had worked. He'd need another rip in the Void to pass through, then it would be easy. But those rarely occurred, and, admittedly, he had no idea where to search for one.

Donna had been all for searching for the famous Rose Tyler, and had even thrown out a suggestion of her own when he was desperate. However, on one failed attempt that followed a long chain of others, they had quarreled. Now, the Doctor found himself in an empty ship, his chest aching.

Often, he cursed the blasted supernova that had cut him off before he could say the vital words, make the vital confession that he could never make himself say before. At times, he hated himself for not telling her sooner. There had been countless opportunities. But he had been afraid. He had known that she would grow old, and he would one day lose her, so he had stayed guarded. Rose was the only companion he had ever really loved, and would ever love. Losing her, the only one who had ever known all that he was and wasn't and accepted it, had devastated him. He remembered the uncharacteristic tears on his cheeks as he was pulled away from her.

Now, he curled on his side, breathing in the lingering scent clinging to her bedspread, his exhausted mind struggling to produce a solution. It was the first time that he had been unable to solve a puzzle.


	3. Discovering

**Author's Note**: Rose has a better day.

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><p>Two days later, after much urging from Jackie, Rose emerged from her room. She wore the Doctor's coat over her own clothing, despite the fact that it was a tad too long for her, brushing her ankles. The sleeves had been rolled up over her wrists, but, regardless of her appearance, the precious feeling of the Doctor's influence gave her a strength that she hadn't experienced for months.<p>

Jackie took in the change in her daughter's appearance as she ghosted into the dining room. "Hello, sweetheart."

Rose surprised her mother by replying with a small, "Morning, Mum."

So surprised she was to hear her child's voice, that Jackie stopped in her task of preparing breakfast to give a Rose a tiny smile. Rose looked away, self conscious, and Jackie remembered herself. "Are you hungry, love?" She asked.

Pete entered then, holding Grayson. "I know someone who is, and it's not just Gray."

Jackie laughed as he laid a kiss on her cheek. "Morning, Jacks," he said, loading Gray into his booster seat. "Rose."

"Morning," Rose offered timidly. She knew now that it was ridiculous, but Rose had gone through a phase where she had detested Pete with every particle of her being simply because he had been the one to take her through the Void that final time, away from her Doctor. Now, she rarely spoke, to him especially, so when she did, he looked pleasantly surprised.

A silence ensued for a moment as Rose accepted the eggs offered by her mother. They were scrambled and covered in melted cheese, just as she liked them. Jackie waited, expecting Rose to reject the food and only sip at the tea in front of her. Rose, however, forced herself to lift the fork and bring a bite to her lips. The food felt heavy and unpleasant in her mouth, but she remembered her imaginary conversation with the Doctor, and she knew that she did indeed need to start taking care of herself again. Therefore, she forced three bites down, before lowering the fork and pushing the plate away.

The silence had endured, without even a sound from Gray, who had finished his entire bowl of mush in the time it had taken his sister to force down three bites. Pete wiped his son's face before turning to tuck into his own breakfast. Jackie busied herself with unstrapping a squirming Gray.

When she had gotten him out of his chair, Jackie gave his rump a little squeeze. "Looks like someone needs a new nappy."

Rose found herself following her mother into Gray's nursery, and watching, almost transfixed as he was changed. She wondered what the Doctor would think of her life now. He would probably say that is was too domestic for his tastes.

"Mum," She said, voice just above a whisper.

Jackie looked up from wrestling with her son's onesie. "Yeah, sweetheart?"

"Can I- Can I hold Gray?"

Jackie gave a laugh. "Why didn't you ask before? We could have used some help." Without hesitation, she passed the baby to Rose, who was a bit overwhelmed with his mass on her thin arms. She looked down at the little infant, noting that he had the same eyes as she and her mother.

Rose found her mind wandering. She wondered whether the baby's eyes would have been hazel or brown, had he been her and the Doctor's. Or, perhaps, it would have the first Doctor's eyes. She had always liked the silvery blue. _I was a dad once_. She had never pressed him on that, perhaps because she had wanted it to be a joke, or because she hadn't wanted to think of him with another woman. Now she'd never know.

A knock sounded in the other room, making Gray gurgle and squeal. Rose quickly handed him back to Jackie, before heading to answer the door.

Mickey walked in, dressed in his Torchwood uniform. He took in Rose's clothing before meeting her gaze. "Rose, did you want to go to work? I know you haven't felt well for the past couple of days."

"No, I'll go," she said.

Rose had bad days, where she did naught but cry, or lock herself in her room. However, she also had the occasional good day, where she talked, ate, and left the house. This looked like it was going to be a good day. At least to start.

THE TARDIS:

The TARDIS could sense the unrest in the Doctor. He had directed her nowhere for the past three days. So she had floated in deep space, no objective or heading in sight. However, as he had dozed in Rose's quarters, the TARDIS had made a realization. Deep inside of her soul, she detected something odd. It was a sort of presence that the TARDIS found extremely familiar, and almost sisterly in nature. It exuded sad broken emotions that depressed the TARDIS herself.

The ship ran several possibilities, until she made a delicious discovery. This mental connection was familiar. She did not know how she could have missed it, especially in light of the Doctor's persistent distress. This changed everything. The TARDIS was determined to use this new discovery to cheer her Doctor.

With this in mind, the TARDIS ran a scan of deep space, until she came across what she was looking for. At that moment, it was full speed ahead to what would soon be a solution to this lasting pain and depression that took a toll on the TARDIS's own emotions as well as her Doctor's.


	4. Hallucinating?

**Author's Note**: This is where the twist mentioned in the summary comes into play.

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><p>Several weeks later found Rose with Mickey in a tiny cafe. She picked at her chips, displeased at their artificial nature. This parallel planet had shoddy chips, and she missed Randy's Chip Shack, which was a sushi place on Pete's world.<p>

She still wore the Doctor's coat as a security blanket, but she seemed to be getting better. In fact, her family had noted that there had been a higher number of "good days" of late. Now, she sat discussing a happening at Torchwood with Mickey, and it was almost like old times, before her life had taken a downward spiral.

Now, however, as they talked, Rose felt a prickling on the back of her neck, as though she was being watched. She ignored it for a time, until it became so persistent that she was forced to turn casually to inspect the source of the problem. What she saw floored her so much that she leapt from her seat, upsetting the drinks and chips that the table supported when she knocked it over.

"What wrong, Rose?" Mickey asked, alarmed. However, he received no answer, as she was already out the door of the shop and booking frantically down the street. He could hear her shouting what sounded like "Doctor" over and over, as if trying to get someone's attention.

When Mickey finally caught up to her, she was rooted to the sidewalk, her throat raw from shouting. People on the street were giving her a wide berth as they passed, sure that she was mental. "Rose, what the bloody hell is wrong with you?"

"I saw him, Mickey. I saw the Doctor. He was just staring in the window, like he was watching me. But when I noticed, he just started running. I didn't see him when I tried to follow. But I swear he was there." Her tone was tiny and desperate.

Rose's words deflated Mickey visibly. She had been doing so well, almost seeming to move on, and now she was cracking up. "Rose, that's impossible. The Doctor told you that on the beach that day." He stared at her as if he expected her to combust. The look irritated a confused Rose.

"I saw him, Mickey!" She snapped. When he said nothing, she grew angry. "You think I've gone mad, don't you?"

"Rose, I don't think you've gone mad. I just think you're stressed out. You probably saw a guy who looked a little like the Doctor, and flipped out. Now come on. We have to go back and pay for the chips."

"You can believe what you want, but I know what I saw. He's here, and he's got to be coming for me."

He nodded placatingly, before taking her hand like a child, and leading her away.

Rose threw herself into preparing for the Doctor's appearance. She was so sure that she had seen him, hands in his pockets, that she even went so far as to pack a bag.

However, when he didn't come for a week, she began to wonder what was keeping him. She found herself searching for a phone box on every street corner. Nothing. She didn't see any sign that he was even in that world, let alone coming for her. Still, she refused to believe that she had imagined him in the window.

A few more days passed, and Rose's family watched her grow paranoid and depressed as she considered the idea that the Doctor might not want to retrieve her. Perhaps he had found someone else. Someone better, more intelligent, more attractive.

She found herself mindlessly typing up a handwritten report at her desk in Torchwood, feeling wretched, when suddenly, the screen on the monitor went black. Puzzled, she struggled to right the issue. However, when she succeeded in readjusting the brightness setting, her heart stopped. It was him. His face was staring back at her from the screen.

"Rose." His voice said, from the computer speakers.

She was shaking, and her heart pounded violently. "D-Doctor?" She whispered frantically. "Where are you?"

"Rose." The voice said again, before the screen suddenly returned to what it had originally displayed. She beat the keyboard spastically, and shook the monitor. "Come back!" She shouted. "Please, Doctor!"

Mickey walked in with Jake at that moment, only to see the other secretaries staring at Rose, who looked in quite a state as she pounded on her computer, hair and coat flying about her. Jake gave him a look, as if to say, _is she mental?_ Mickey moved quickly across the room to secure Rose's hands, before she succeeded in clawing open the hard drive.

"He was there, Mickey!" She shrieked. "Just like at the chip shop! He said my name! I saw him!" Rose continued to struggle wildly against Mickey's restraining grasp.

"Rose! Stop it! He's not here!" Mickey had to shout to get through to her.

She sagged upon his assertion. "I don't know what he wants from me. He didn't say anything but, 'Rose.' That doesn't bloody help me, Doctor!"

"Let's go. We're going home," he said, again leading her away. As he passed Jake, who was still staring, concerned, Mickey snapped, "Get a techie on the damned computer. Check the hard drive."

Jake nodded. The only conclusion Mickey could draw from Rose's outburst, other than the idea that she really was mad, was that someone was playing a disgusting joke on her. If that proved to be the case, Mickey would kill the idiot with his bare hands.


	5. Exploding

**Author's Note**: Rose has a freak out in this chapter.

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><p>Jackie Tyler watched her daughter like a hawk. When Mickey had brought her home early from Torchwood a few weeks ago, all that Rose had done was fiddle with the family computer.<p>

Pete was aware of the stress this new development in Rose was causing, and he did his best to help. One day, he brought in a renowned therapist to talk to Rose. Jackie had been furious at first, flying at him with the accusation that he was trying to put their daughter on some kind of crazy pills or commit her. However, he had calmed her down by levelly explaining that the therapist was just going to assess Rose, to see if he could help.

Now, the shrink sat in an armchair in the living room, listening intently as Rose babbled about the Doctor and the visions she'd been having.

"And he keeps appearing, everywhere I look. I see him in the mirror behind me, in water glasses, the static in my radio. But whenever I try to acknowledge him, he's gone. I think he's trying to get my attention somehow, but I don't know why, and I have no way to figure it out." She was worked up as she explained herself.

The therapist nodded, thinking for a moment. Finally, he spoke, slowly, as if to a child. "Rose, the period of mourning is divided into four stages. Denial, anger, depression, and acceptance. It seems to me that you are between anger and depression. That being said, you seem to have developed a mental fixation that prevents you from moving on to the acceptance stage of grief. This fixation is controlling your ability to perceive what is around you."

Rose sighed in exasperation. "You don't understand," she said. "Everyone just thinks I'm cracking up. But I really see him. Really. And hear him. I can tell the difference."

"Really," the therapist said. "How?"

"I-I used to pretend that he was with me. I could… imagine what he would say, what he would sound like. But I would never see him, and it would always be muddled. But this, this is so clear. It's like, I could touch him if I wanted to."

"You say that you made believe that this doctor was with you?" The therapist echoed. "Tell me, explain the nature of your relationship."

She nodded. "First off, it's not 'this doctor.' He's _the_ Doctor. Like, he didn't have another name. Well, he did, but he never said it."

The therapist nodded indulgently, and she continued. "He and I… we traveled together. That was all it was at first. Then, after he… after some things, I realized that I… I love him."

"Ah. Did you ever tell him this?"

"I did, but it was too late."

"What was too late?"

"I lost him," she said, her voice growing quiet.

"What do you mean, 'lost him'?" The therapist prompted. "Did he leave you?"

"Yeah." She said. "But it wasn't his fault. Something happened."

"What?"

"We-we got separated, and we… couldn't get back to each other."

The therapist quirked a brow. "Why couldn't you?"

Tears filled Rose's eyes. "We just couldn't. It was impossible."

"Mm-hmm…" The therapist said, scribbling on his notepad. "You say that you love this-I mean, _the_ Doctor. Did he return your feelings?"

Rose struggled to swallow around the great bulge forming in her throat. "Y-yes. I think so."

"You think so? Did he ever explicitly tell you that?"

Her voice was strained as she talked. "He was going to."

"Why didn't he?"

"We got cut off," she forced out after a moment.

"In a phone conversation?" The therapist assumed.

"S-sort of. Only, he could never call me again."

The therapist nodded again, silent for several long moments. After a bit, he cleared his throat and spoke again. "Rose, I am going to suggest something that may upset you, but I need you to hear me out."

She didn't reply, not wanting to commit to such a request without knowing what it was he was going to say. The therapist took her silence as an agreement, and continued, "Perhaps the Doctor didn't return your feelings. Perhaps it was just time for you to part ways. Maybe the reason that he hasn't come back for you is that he doesn't want to-"

"Shut up," Rose snapped.

The therapist was taken aback by the force in her voice. "Rose, I just want you to consider-"

"You think that I haven't considered the possibility that I'm just a stupid ape that he grew tired of? You think I haven't asked myself everyday if he could have just popped through whenever he wanted, and didn't because he wanted to move on? If that's what you honestly think, then I'm not the one who's daft!"

"Please, Rose. It was just a suggestion."

"You don't even know him! How can you just sit there and pretend to understand what we had? He promised me forever! We just got interrupted is all! It was going to be forever! I promised!"

Pete came in then, surprised to see his daughter on her feet, practically hysterical. The therapist looked concerned as Pete gathered Rose into his arms. "Dad," she sobbed. "I want to be left alone. I don't need a bloody shrink. I can't even tell the whole story, or he'd write me off as mad before I even got started. Please, send him away."

Pete patted his daughter's hair, which was in need of a good wash, and said to the doctor still watching them that he had better go. "Come back next week."

The therapist nodded, before collecting his things and exiting the apartment as Jackie entered from shopping, Gray on her hip. At the sight of the display, she immediately started yelling. "What have you done to her, Pete? I told you a bloody therapist wasn't what she needed! She needs her family!"

Rose clung to Pete. "I… I don't know what to do for her, Jacks," he said wretchedly. "What do you need from me, Rose?" He begged.

She said nothing, and merely pulled out of his grip. "I need to sleep. I-I'm really sorry, Mum, Dad."


	6. Dreaming

**Author's Note**: Finally, A Rose/Doctor moment!

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><p>That night, Rose had tossed and turned, lingering on the possibility that the Doctor really didn't want her anymore. Perhaps he truly wasn't there, or he wasn't going to be. She had almost resigned herself to the soul crushing understanding that she was truly alone as she fell into a deep sleep.<p>

THE TARDIS:

The Doctor was tinkering frantically at the TARDIS's console. The ship had been whining dangerously for the better part of an hour, and he had no idea what was causing the problem. Since the night that he had allowed himself a moment of solace in Rose's quarters, the TARDIS has been acting strangely. She hadn't let him override her controls, and she had shut him out mentally, something that she had never done before. The lack of mental link that was always present left him feeling empty, and he feared for his ship's well being.

"What is it?" He asked the ship, trying to get her to give him some indication as to the source of the horrible whining.

She gave him nothing. She was too focused on another task, one that was far more trying and required more concentration.

ROSE:

"_Rose."_

_Rose stood on the beach at Darlig Ulv Stranden, her eyes struggling to adjust to the blinding white light before her. Her feet forced her to move towards the sound of the Doctor calling her name. _

_The outline of his body came into view. "Rose." He said again._

"_Doctor?" Her own voice called out._

_He came into focus, still bathed in that blinding light that was foreign, but that she somehow seemed to recognize. She could have cried at the sight of his warm hazel eyes, and the coffee brown suit. "Hello, Rose."_

"_Doctor, are you really there?"_

_He smiled. "This is a dream, Rose."_

_She nodded, resigned. "All right." She had already known this truth in her subconscious mind, but she had found herself willing it to be false. "Have you finally decided to tell me why you've been tormenting me these past few weeks?" Her tone was accusatory, and she kicked herself for sassing him when this was one of the rare dreams where she could conjure him completely._

_He laughed, the familiar sound washing over her. "I needed to get a message to you, but I couldn't manage while you were awake."_

"_Then I really was seeing you? I'm not mental?"_

"_No, Rose. Never."_

_She smiled a little. "What did you need to tell me?" She found her mind straying to what she would like the answer to be. She wanted to hear him finish the cut off sentence. She would live on it the rest of her days. _

_He didn't. Instead he said, "Rose, I need you to return to the spot on this beach where I last saw you exactly one year ago."_

_Had it really been an entire year since she had spoken with him properly? It was amazing to Rose that she had managed to survive for that long._

"_Why?" She asked, hoping he would explain._

"_Just be there tomorrow," was all that he gave her._

"_Tomorrow!" She gasped. "But I'm in London now. It took us three days to drive it."_

_He grew urgent. "Rose, it is imperative that you make it just before midnight tomorrow night."_

"_Why?" She demanded. "What'll be waiting for me when I get there?"_

"_I have to go, Rose. I can't sustain the connection."_

"_Wait!" She cried, dashing forward as he began to shimmer out of focus. _

"_Remember, before midnight tomorrow night!"_

_She lunged forward, only to pass through him. "Doctor, I have so many questions! So much to say!" But he was gone, and Rose felt a pulling sensation as she seemed to speed away from the beach._


	7. Chasing

**Author's Note**: This sequence seems to go pretty quickly. Sorry if you get whiplash. :)

* * *

><p>Rose snapped awake, sucking in great gulps of air. She was back in her bed in Pete's London. All it took was a single moment to register what she had learned in the dream for her to be out of her bed, throwing off her jimjams. There was a persistent buzzing at the front of her head, and it drove her to dress. She pulled on her trainers, sweats, and a sports jumper. Finally, she pulled on the Doctor's coat, inhaling the lingering scent for the umpteenth time since Mickey had given it to her. After a glance at the clock, Rose determined that she had a little more than twenty-two hours to reach the beach. She knew that the Doctor wouldn't have contacted her if it wasn't vital that she be there.<p>

She entered her parents' room and shook her mother and father awake just enough to bid them goodbye. They fell back asleep the moment that she pulled back. After she left the room, she crept into Gray's room.

The baby slept gently in his crib, and barely moved when she lifted him from it gingerly to lay a kiss on his head and embrace him. "I would have loved to be your sister, if things were different. I love you, Gray."

Before she left, Rose penned four long letters to say goodbye. One to each parent, one to Grayson, and, finally, one to Mickey. Each had its own thing to say, and she hoped she expressed her deepest love and gratitude in them. As she walked out of the door, Rose pilfered Pete's credit card from his overcoat pocket and slipped it into the Doctor's own coat.

She reached the London airport an hour later, giving her a little over twenty-one hours to reach the beach.

"I need a one-way ticket on the first departing flight to Norway," Rose declared to the flight coordinator yawning in the window.

The coordinator snapped to a sluggish attention, bringing up the flight schedule with two manicured fingers. "Next flight to Norway leaves in an hour," she told Rose, looking suspiciously at her through the glass. "You want a seat?"

"Yes, please," Rose said, nodding emphatically.

"I need a credit card and some ID, please," the Coordinator demanded, waiting.

Rose withdrew her driver's license and the stolen credit card. Her hands shook as she pushed them under the window. She silently prayed that she would not be stopped because she was not Pete Tyler.

Thankfully, there was no trouble. The Coordinator popped in a piece of gum as the ticket printed. She handed it back through. "That's a first class."

"Thank you." Rose said, seizing the boarding pass and clinging to it.

"Do you have any bags to check?"

"No." She answered. "C-could you tell me how long the flight is scheduled to be?"

The Coordinator sighed before again consulting her computer. "It'll be a short two hour flight."

Rose thanked the coordinator, and began to figure as she made her way towards airport security. She would board the plane in an hour, take two in transit, land in the center of the country, and then rent a car. The drive south would take her at least five, if not six hours. It should put her in town with fifteen hours to spare. She could rest in a hotel on the outskirts of town for a few hours, and then drive the last hour down to the spot on the beach. If she didn't run into many problems, she should be able to make the Doctor's deadline with ease.

When she found herself on the plane, she began to consider the possibility of why the Doctor needed her there, and how he had come to contact her. She ran several options through her mind, secretly clinging to the one that she wouldn't let herself accept, though it was what she wanted most. She didn't know if she could survive anything different, but she would just have to find out.

The plane was mostly empty, save for a few businessmen and weary travelers on their way home. Most slept, ignoring the turbulence rocking the aircraft. Rose, however, could not sleep. She clung, white knuckled, to the seat in front of her, while adrenaline pounded in her ears. She doubted that she would be able to properly relax until she was situated in the Norwegian coastal town. Thus, she watched in fixed concentration as the blue green ocean gave way to lush Scandinavian coastline. _I'm coming, Doctor_, she thought frantically. _I'll be there. _

The more she thought about her destination, the more persistent the buzzing in her head that she had noticed became. It was irritating and distracting, but Rose did her best to forget about its presence.

The plane landed on a dreary patch of runway. Rain poured heavily outside of Rose's window as she gathered the Doctor's coat from the seat beside her, pulling it on as she thundered down the gangway. A glance at her watch told confirmed the calculations she had made back in London. Everything was right on schedule.

She made her way to the lobby, and asked to be directed to the nearest car rental or cab service. A swipe of Pete's credit card later, she was on her way to Dalig Ulv Stranden.

As she drove, she began to regret her hasty actions. How could she have not said goodbye? She would have had time. What if the Doctor really had found a way to her? Was she going to disappear without a trace? No. It wasn't a question of if she would leave with the Doctor, it was the thought of never saying goodbye to her poor mother when she did. She sighed, turning up the radio that was keeping her alert. There was nothing to be done at that moment. She'd forgotten her cell phone, so perhaps she would use a pay phone at the hotel.

Her head was buzzing so much that she was verging on a migraine. She gave another sigh. It had to be the excitement of what she was doing, but it was certainly annoying enough to make her angry. Of course her head would do something so unnecessary when she really needed to focus.

THE TARDIS:

The whining had finally stopped on the TARDIS, and she seemed to be functioning normally again. Well, as normally as a ship blocking her captain's ability to navigate her could act. The Doctor had accepted the TARDIS had a location in mind, and had resigned himself to waiting until they reached it. However, had it been up to him, they would have been back on earth to get Donna. The utter quiet of the ship was leaving him to dwell on uncomfortable and unwanted memories.

_Stop it, you git_, he thought angrily to himself, _you need to stop moaning and crying about her. She's never coming back, and you can't see her again. Ever._ The rebuke only succeeded in stirring up more thoughts of her. Of how her hair had shone in the sun, how her tongue found itself in the corner of her mouth when she'd grinned. His own lips curled slightly as he remembered how he had kissed her in his old body, and then again when Cassandra had invaded her body. He wondered what it would be like to kiss Rose when there were no dire circumstances or trickery. Had he not known better, he would have tried to pass this curiosity off as his never-ending quest to learn, but now, he understood that it was Rose more than anything intellectual. He had loved holding her, even when it was supposed to be a merely platonic gesture. He had loved feeling her hand in his. As he thought of her, he became to determined to return to earth for his beloved friend who so cheered him.

The TARDIS didn't have time to comfort the Doctor as she struggled to project what she needed to and where. Rose was on the move, the TARDIS knew, and she'd be damned if she'd let Rose screw this up. It was the best choice, for the Doctor, for Rose, and for the TARDIS herself.


	8. Apologizing

**Author's Note**: I really liked playing with Mickey and Rose's friendship. I decided to shy away from Mickey's jealousy issues, and make him a bit more understanding.

* * *

><p>Rose checked into a rickety hotel to collect herself. She needed rest, she needed a shower, and she needed to call her mother. According to her watch, Rose had thirteen hours left until she needed to be on the coast, thanks to weather and traffic. It was eleven o'clock in the morning when she opened the door to her room.<p>

The water, though saturated with calcium, felt like heaven as Rose washed her hair and let the stream warm her rain frozen limbs. She didn't like to think about how long it had been since she had had a proper bath, and thus focused her energy on taming her hair.

As she stepped out, a towel wrapped around herself, she suddenly felt her knees give way. The buzzing in her head had transformed into painful burning. She gave a cry as it pulsed at the center point between her eyes. When it subsided, she whimpered, a hand to her forehead.

In the mirror, there was no sign of outer damage, so Rose popped an aspirin before dressing and sitting down to ring her parents.

"Rose?" Jackie demanded as soon as she picked up.

"Hi, Mum," Rose said cautiously.

The next few moments had Rose holding the receiver away from her ear as Jackie bellowed at her. "What in the bloody hell do you think you're doing? Where are you? You can't just leave us with no notice, nothing! And you stole your dad's credit card!"

"I know, Mum, but I had to," Rose floundered to explain.

"What reason could you possibly have?" Jackie demanded.

"The Doctor. He came to me, like before. Do you remember the dream a year ago? He told me to go to the beach. Well, he needs me again, and I have to be at the beach just before midnight."

"You're in bloody Norway?" Jackie shouted. "You were just going to leave without so much as a goodbye or a thank you?"

"No," said Rose. "That's why I called. Last night, when I woke up, I left as soon as possible. Suppose I had stayed. What if I had missed him?"

There was silence on the other line. Finally, Pete took the phone from his wife. "Hello, Rose."

"Hi, Dad," she replied. "I'm sorry for taking your card. I can mail it back to you before I go."

"Forget about it. Do you know what he wants this time?"

"No. But it's got to be important, or he wouldn't have called me. He told me he wanted me to have a life, remember?"

Pete sighed, "if you never come back, I just want you to know that I love you, and your mother loves you. All we want for you is happiness."

"Thanks, Dad," Rose said behind a lump in her throat. "Will you tell Grayson that I love him?"

"Why don't you tell him?" Pete asked, before Rose heard a little coo into the phone. She gave a small sob.

"Hello, Gray," she said. "It's Rose. I'm sorry I wasn't a very good sister to you. But you're gonna grow up to be such a good boy, who'll take care of mum and dad and Uncle Mickey. I love you, sweetie."

The baby laughed into the phone, jerking a few more sobs from Rose. Suddenly, Jackie seized the phone. "I love you, Rose. I just want you to be so careful, because I'll never know if you're okay or not. So be okay, for me. Do you hear me?"

"Yes, Mum," Rose said, fully crying now.

"And you better not leave without calling Mickey. That's not fair, and you know it." Jackie continued.

Mickey. Her mother was right. Mickey deserved better than how she had treated him for the past year. "Okay, I will. I love you so much, Mum."

"I love you, too, Sweetheart," Jackie echoed, her voice cracking. "So much." With that, she hung up, leaving Rose to her devices. She struggled to contain herself, knowing that if she started crying before she called Mickey, she wouldn't be able to talk to him at all. Fingers shaking, Rose forced herself to dial his cell number, knowing that it was his first day off in weeks.

"Hello," came the familiar voice.

"Hey, Mickey," she said.

"Rose?" His voice asked, incredulous. "Where the hell are you? I've been looking for you since six this morning. Are you okay? Is everything all right?"

"I'm in Norway, Mickey," she answered. "I'm fine, but I needed to leave as quickly as possible."

There was a short silence. "Rose, this is about the Doctor, isn't it?"

She sighed, "Yeah, it is. He came to me in a dream, like before. He told me that I needed to be back at the beach before midnight tonight. He only told me early this morning. I had to go, Mickey."

"I know you did," he said, resigned. "He's the Doctor, of course you gotta go."

"Thank you for understanding."

"Rose, how could I not understand. I watched your soul hide itself away when he left. If this is only way to get it back, then I wouldn't dream of stopping you."

She sniffled. "Mickey, you've been the best friend that a girl could ask for. I love you, and I'm sorry."

"I love you, too, Rose," he returned, "and if you ever find a way to safely visit, then you sure as hell better, you stupid bint."

"Hey!" She laughed. He laughed too for a moment, before sobering.

"If you've up since early this morning, then you should get some sleep. You don't know what you might have to do. Don't waste time talking to me, and don't hesitate when the time comes, got it?"

"Yeah," she answered. "I've got it."

"Bye, Rose."

"Bye, Mickey."

When she finished her phone call, Rose didn't feel like crying anymore. She curled up on her side on the tiny bed in the little hotel room, setting her alarm to go off in six hours, which would give her five to reach the beach and prepare herself.

THE TARDIS:

They were almost there. The TARDIS could feel the weak fabric in the space time continuum. She struggled to maintain contact with Rose mentally and continue to steer them towards that vital point in each universe. The Doctor rested now, having given up his struggle to overrule her decision in navigation.

She focused her energy, and sent a motivating mental blast through to Rose, giving a great whine as she pushed the burst through the Void. The sound woke the Doctor.

"At it again, are you?" He demanded. "When are you going to let me in on the little secret?"

She did nothing of the sort. The Doctor crossed his arms, before settling huffily back into the jumpseat. "Fine."


	9. Racing

Author's Note: This one definitely goes fast. I wrote it while playing very fast and driving music to get into the mood and to reach the frantic tone.

* * *

><p>Rose snapped awake with the combination of earsplitting thunder and what felt like the separating of her brain from her skull. She gave a scream and clutched at her head with both hands, as if trying to keep it from splitting. The room seemed to be shaking with the violence of the thunderstorm outside.<p>

After the pain stop searing, and merely was splitting, Rose forced open her brown eyes, and gave a great curse. The power had gone, and she had only two hours until midnight. How could she have slept so long? Within instants, she was up and running, the Doctor's coat billowing out behind her.

Outside, the sky swirled with dangerous looking clouds. Rose was instantly soaked as she ran to the little car she had rented. She needed to go, now, if she had any hope of making the beach in this weather. Cursing, she slammed on the brakes and skidded across the pavement and out onto the street. She tore out of the town, thankful that no one was on the road, for she would have killed them before she could have reacted.

Rose felt her head begin to sear again, and nearly screamed as she caught a glimpse of her eyes in the rearview mirror. They seemed to be glowing with an internal light. She quickly pulled the car to the side of the road until the utter agony of the blazing heat in her head subsided. She screamed and whimpered for several moments before she found herself streaking down the road in the little compact car again. Forty-five minutes. On a good day, it would take that long to reach the beach. She had to make it, she just had to.

Her foot held the gas pedal to the floor as she drove with reckless abandon, swerving almost drunkenly on the road, again thanking God that there was no one else present.

She took the turn to the beach easily, with only seven minutes to spare. However, when she glanced back at the road, she swerved dangerously to avoid what appeared to be an enormous black wolf, staring at her as it stood in the center of the road, rain slicking its coat.

The compact sailed through the air, before flipping and landing hard on the sand of the beach. Rose felt her vision go cloudy as she felt her limbs slowly regain feeling. Four minutes, and she could barely move, a pain her shoulder almost incapacitating her. To make matters worse, seconds later, her head was exploding in paralyzing pain. She screamed, and was terrified by the light coming from her mouth in a steady ray. Was she going to die so close to her goal? Her fingers, slicked with blood from some unknown injured part of her fumbled with the seatbelt, and she made herself use her good arm and her legs drag herself through the shattered window, wincing as the exposed shards sliced at her through her clothes. Two minutes.

THE TARDIS:

The TARDIS was shaking violently as the Doctor clung desperately to the console. "What is it?" He screamed. "What's happening?"

She couldn't answer. She could see Rose through the Void, could see her buried by metal, glass, and shrapnel. But she needed to reach the open sky before the rift healed itself. The TARDIS focused on sending more of the motivating pain through their connection. Rose needed to move just a little more. Her body had to clear that window in thirty seconds, or all of their efforts were completely null.

_Come on, Rose_, the TARDIS begged. _You can do this_. Her injuries could be dealt with once she made it. She just needed to make it.

ROSE:

The rain blinded Rose as she screamed from more and more pain, which threatened to destroy her. Her entire body protested from her movement, but with each scream, more light escaped, and she was sure that her eyes would be glowing like before, based on the fire in her vision.

Suddenly, in her mind, Rose could hear him. _Come on, Rose_. He said. _You can do this_. The voice sounded desperate and pleading. Yes. For him, she could make him. She could. She gritted her teeth, and, even though she felt as though she had been dipped in napalm, she forced herself to pull against the sand, her broken shoulder blade screaming in pain. Fifteen seconds.

Just as the clock ran to three seconds, Rose's ankles cleared the wreckage of the car, and she rolled onto her back, struggling to suck in air through the crushing in her lungs, and the restricting rain in her face.

THE TARDIS:

There! She was free. The TARDIS did not hesitate as she jerked onto Rose's connection and fired the most powerful burst of energy she had ever produced.

ROSE:

Rose felt as though she were going to die of pain as she opened her mouth wide to scream. A beam of light poured from her eyes, nose, mouth, and suddenly, the world around her whizzed by. This was it. This must be dying. She hadn't imagined that it would hurt this much. She closed her eyes as she realized that she would never see the Doctor again.

THE TARDIS:

Several seconds later, the TARDIS's distress subsided, and the light that had been blinding the Doctor halted as quickly as it had started. He pulled himself to his feet. "What the _hell_ was that?" He demanded. "You blasted ship!"

ROSE:

Rose lay on the other side of the console, gasping as she began to register the cold metal beneath the soaking coat. The sound of his voice almost stopped her heart.

"_What the hell was that, you blasted ship?"_

Ship? Was it real? Could it be possible? Rose cracked open her eyes, and was greeted by the ceiling of the TARDIS. She had made it.

The Doctor was still shouting at the ship. "Will you _please_ explain this behavior to me?" He demanded.

"D-Doctor?" Rose rasped, giving a loud cry as she pulled her body into a sitting position.

There was silence, save for the sound of feet shooting around to the other side of the console. Before her eyes, what was better than any heavenly angel appeared.

The Doctor's eyes widened in disbelief. "Rose?" He croaked.

"Yeah." She managed, tears spilling down her cheeks. "Yes, Doctor, it's me."

He dashed to her side, snatching her to a standing position. She cried out loudly in pain as he cupped her face, her cheeks, as if trying to confirm to himself that she was truly before him. "Rose!" He repeated, grinning wildly. "How did you- how is this-?" So overcome with emotion was he that, without warning, he jerked her face to his, laying a hard kiss on her mouth.

Rose would have returned the kiss with equal passion had she been fully able bodied. However, considering that she was far from it, her knees gave way as she fell into a dead faint. The Doctor caught her body as it slumped forward, all happiness replaced by fear and horror, as he truly registered her injuries for the first time. Without hesitation, he lifted her slight form from the ground, and all but ran to get her some help.


	10. Understanding

**Author's Note**: Doctor/Rose cuteness! Some memories and some insight on my favorite moments in seasons 1 and 2.

* * *

><p>Rose opened her eyes, and her mouth felt completely dry. She gave a small cough as she sat up. The room was dark, and it felt as though she was lying on a table of some sort. It took her mind a moment to register where she was and how she had gotten there. The moment she did, she felt the lights illuminate the room. It was the medical hall. She recognized it from the minor injuries that she had sustained with the Doctor before they had been separated. Glancing down at herself, she was surprised to see that she was completely whole, down to the cuts and scrapes she had gotten from the glass in the car.<p>

Carefully, Rose put her feet down on the floor and gingerly put weight on them. Besides the stiffness associated with spending a long time on a table, Rose felt absolutely normal. That is, until she realized that she wore a completely different set of clothing. Her jumper, sweats, and trainers had been replaced by a familiar cotton sundress. She was barefoot as she padded across the floor and out into the hall.

The familiar sound of tinkering led her into the control room. Her throat caught at the sight of the Doctor working on the TARDIS. He wore his blue suit and chucks, as usual, and his trench coat was slung over the back of the jumpseat. She blinked back tears as she stepped into the familiar room.

"Doctor?" She said, her voice surprisingly small.

He looked up, his smile lighting up his face. "Well, if it isn't Miss Rose Tyler," he said, abandoning the console to bound over to her. She inhaled sharply as he embraced her, trying to make all of her senses acknowledge that he was real there.

When he pulled back, she felt empty again, and thus, she seized his hand as he pulled her deeper into the control room. He smiled at her, and led her to the jumpseat with a general air of contentment.

When she had situated herself, he looked intently at her. "First things first, Rose," he started. "How are you feeling?"

She flexed her muscles again. "A little stiff, but pretty normal, actually. How did you do that so quickly? I was almost positive I broke some bones. I could barely move when I got here."

"Well," he explained, "I got a visit from our Captain Jack several months ago. Do you remember the nanites? The ones that save the gas mask child back in World War II?"

She nodded, thinking of the little glowing lights that repaired damaged living tissue. That had been before he had changed his face. It seemed like ages ago to her.

The Doctor continued. "Well, he gave me some, as a nostalgia gift. At first, I didn't know what I was going to do with them, as I very rarely receive an injury serious enough to warrant their services. And then, a couple months later, here you show up, all bloody and looking like you've been in quite the row. They jumped at the chance to be of use, brilliant little things. Now, here you are, good as new. Better than new, actually. I think it's a demonstration of Jack's gratitude, despite the complications."

She caught his wording. "What do you mean, "complications"?" She asked.

He trailed off of his babbling sentence, and looked at her for a long moment before giving a nod. "We'll get there."

"Doctor?"

"Hmm?"

"How- how did you bring me back here?" She had wanted to know since he had come to her in her dream how he had solved the riddle of inter-dimensional projections.

He laughed. "I didn't. You came back yourself."

She gave a nervous laugh of her own. "No, I didn't."

He looked puzzled. "You didn't?" He repeated, more like a statement. He turned to the TARDIS, who hummed a little more noticeably. Rose assumed that, if the TARDIS were human, she would be whistling innocently at that moment.

"Do you care to explain yourself?" The Doctor asked his ship.

In reply, the TARDIS's monitor came on, and began to glow. Rose and the Doctor gathered around it with interest.

As if someone had pressed play, a video suddenly began. Rose saw herself in a very familiar control room. In front of her stood the Doctor, the one with whom she had begun her adventures.

"_My head," She said on the video._

"_Come here," the Doctor said, opening his arms to her._

"_is killing me."_

"_I think you need a Doctor."_

Rose watched the first Doctor, well, the first that she had met anyway, pull her to him and kiss her. The current Doctor glanced sidelong at the real Rose, blushing minutely, before refocusing on the television.

They watched as the old Doctor absorbed the TARDIS energy that Rose had taken into herself, and shot it back into the heart of the TARDIS. Then, the video seemed to fast forward to where the first Doctor became what he was today.

"_Rose Tyler. I was gonna take you to so many places. Barcelona. The planet Barcelona, not the city. You'd love it. Fantastic place. They've got dogs with no noses."_

As Rose watched, she remembered the first time that this had happened. She had been crushed when he had changed. She never would have thought then, that she would feel as she did now, not after what had felt like an earth shattering deception.

"_You can't imagine how many times a day you end up telling that joke. And it's still funny," the video Doctor continued, giving a laugh._

"_Then why can't we go?" Rose asked him._

"_Maybe you will. And maybe I will, but not like this."_

_She rose. "You're not making sense."_

_He kept joking. "I may not ever make sense again. I might have two heads. Or no head." The old Doctor laughed._

Rose turned to the current Doctor. "You know, this really wasn't funny at all. And you kept laughing. I remember being so confused."

"I was dying!" The Doctor snapped playfully. "Would you rather me have been somber?"

"That is generally how people act around death."

"_Imagine me with no head. And don't say that's an improvement. It's a bit dodgy, this process."_

"Why is the TARDIS showing us this?" Rose asked. "We were there, we know what happened." "She has to have a reason," the Doctor replied. "Now shush, I've never actually seen myself regenerate."

"_You never know what you're going to end up with." He shot back, illuminating._

"Still, I think you could have cleared some things up for me, instead of making a big joke out of it. It wasn't funny to me."

"_Doctor!" _

"_Stay away!"_

"I didn't know what to say. I didn't have enough time to explain it," the current Doctor said, defensively.

"_Doctor, tell me what's going on."_

"_I absorbed all the energy of the time Vortex, and no one's meant to do that."_

Suddenly, the video changed. The Doctor splayed a hand on the screen. "Oh, come on! We don't even get to see it?"

"Doctor." Rose said, getting his attention as the scene switched. It was Darlig Ulv Stranden. Only it was sunny. Rose squeezed her eyes shut. "I don't want to see it." She whispered, as she remembered the traumatizing goodbye that they had shared.

"_Am I ever gonna see you again?" The on screen Rose crumbled, dissolving into tears._

"_You can't," he replied._

The Doctor looked at his companion, taking her hand. "Don't cry, Rose," he said. "I was obviously wrong. Plus, there's got to be a reason why she's showing us this."

Rose gave a loud sob. "I died that day, Doctor, insaide. For twelve months, it was as if I had died. My feeling was gone. I was empty." He pulled her to him, struggling to maintain his own composure, as she continued. "So much loneliness, Doctor. I couldn't take it. I'm not meant to live without you."

He let her cling to him. "And you're not going to have to, now. Not ever again. In fact, I may not ever let you out of my sight again. We promised forever, remember?" He ran a hand through her hair, which he noted had gotten long again since that day on the beach. "Now," he said, feeling her calm down. "Let the TARDIS finish."

She nodded, forcing her attention back to the screen. The TARDIS made a sound that almost resembled a sigh of exasperation as the video continued. There was a new scene. It featured the Doctor, sitting in Rose's room, holding her jacket. Rose looked at him. The Doctor nodded. "It's still here. Exactly as you left it."


	11. Clinging

**Author's Note**: The Doctor has an important realization here, one that makes it possible to really be with Rose.

* * *

><p>Rose felt a shot to her heart as she watched the Doctor lie on the bed that she had kept on the TARDIS. Her hand tightened on his. His actions in her absence only aided in solidifying her affection for him.<p>

"She skipped Martha and Donna, and even Jack." The Doctor noted.

"Who're Martha and Donna?" Rose asked, suddenly bristling.

"Never mind it," he said, dismissively. "We'll get there too."

The screen now displayed Rose. She sat with Mickey in the chip shop. "Hey! That's when I saw you in Pete's world a few weeks ago!"

"What?" He asked, confused.

"You were there. Staring at me through the window."

"No, I wasn't," he countered, still confused.

"Just watch," Rose snapped. "I won't have you thinking I'm mad, too."

Sure enough, the TARDIS showed the Doctor in the window, and then Rose storming out of the shop, followed by Mickey.

"_Doctor!"_ _She screamed as she followed._

"Mickey thought I'd gone off it."

"Understandable, really," the Doctor said. "You were running down the street after someone that wasn't supposed to be there."

"So you admit that you were there?" She asked.

"No," he said. "I admit that you somehow saw me there. What I want to know is how the TARDIS saw it."

"That's a good point," she said, ignoring his denial of being there, hoping that it would be explained in time. "She couldn't have seen me from Pete's world."

"Is that my coat?" He asked her, absently.

"What? Yeah. Mickey found it in the Torchwood archives. We think you left it on the helicopter the time that we fought the Cybermen. I wore it everyday. You know, because it felt like you were closer that way."

"Hm," he said, nodding. "It looks good on you. Almost suits you, in an odd way."

The various other times that Rose had seen the Doctor flashed by, including the rather embarrassing display at Torchwood. _No wonder they thought I was cracking_, Rose thought, taking in her appearance during the period. _I was._

The therapist flashed by, and suddenly, Rose saw her dream. "There!" She exclaimed. "You told me that you needed me to meet you at the beach in this dream. It was like last year, when you called me from the dying sun. So I went."

"Rose, I didn't do this," the Doctor said, before giving a suspicious look. "But, I think I know who did."

"Who?" She demanded, having a feeling that she knew the answer as well.

"Just watch."

Finally, they reached the night that Rose had crashed on the beach. She watched as she came pealing around the corner, gritting her teeth as the car flipped.

"Mum must have had a conniption when she caught that on the news," Rose said, trying to ease the tension. The Doctor was silent, eyes glued to the screen.

Rose watched the agonizing seconds where she forced herself to crawl out of the car. Blood trailed onto the sand behind her from a gash that she hadn't noticed at that moment. The arm in the shattered shoulder hung unnaturally as she crawled, her mouth open in a scream. The Doctor grimaced as he watched her, struggling to reassure himself that she was, in fact, perfectly fine now. He hated seeing her in pain.

"My head was destroying me, I swear. But something told me to keep moving. It was your voice, in my head. I remember it said, 'you can do this.'" Finally, video Rose rolled on her back. They watched as the blinding light poured from her. "That's where I thought that I was going to die. For sure. I mean, why else would light come out of your body?"

The Doctor did not reply, and video Rose suddenly disappeared from the beach. The screen went dark after that.

"That must have been when you materialized here," he said, thinking hard.

"Well," Rose started. "I still have no idea how I got here."

"No," the Doctor said, ignoring her. "That's impossible. It can't be."

"What?" demanded Rose.

"No," he breathed, "really?"

"Doctor!"

"Based on what the TARDIS is telling me, you… came through the Void. With no ship. This is impossible. Incredible, if it's true. The only way that you can do that is… but that can't be. I took it from you. We just watched it. Unless…"

"Doctor," Rose snapped. "I'm not inside your head! What is it?"

"The TARDIS says that you still held some of the time Vortex's energy inside of you. Ever since the day that you absorbed it. Which means that I missed some of it when I drew it into myself. However, what I can't understand is, if that's true, why it didn't kill you?" He gave a laugh, "It killed me."

"Wait, is that what the light was?" She asked him, struggling to follow his logic patterns. The TARDIS had left a part of herself with her. Was _that_ why she could hear the Doctor in Pete's world?

"But how is that right?" The Doctor demanded, seemingly arguing with himself. However, Rose couldn't see the mental correspondence between the TARDIS and her captain. "No way. She can't be. She's a human!"

"What? What can't I be?" Rose was still trying desperately to understand his thought process.

He stopped suddenly, going silent. "Of course. Of course that would happen. It happened to Jack!"

"Doctor!" Rose, all but screamed.

"Rose!" He said, as if just realizing that she stood beside him. He dashed to her, grasping her shoulders excitedly. "You brought Jack Harkness back to life when you absorbed the heart of the TARDIS. I mentioned 'complications' a few minutes ago."

"Yeah," she nodded, "and you said we'd get there."

"You made him immortal."

"What?" She gasped. "How?"

"I dunno." He said. "I tried to figure it out for quite a while, and eventually settled on the fact that it's one of the mysteries of the universe."

"Well, that's all fine and good," Rose said, "but what has that got to do with me?" She had a feeling that she already knew the answer.

"Apparently, the TARDIS learned that you had a lasting mental connection with her, despite the distance, that was only activated in the time of your greatest distress. I asked her how she was able to follow it, you being only human, and she thinks it's because you have a condition similar to Jack's."

She shook her head to clear it. Had she heard that right? "Sorry, what?"

"Rose, I don't think that you can die." The Doctor said excitedly.


	12. Loving

**Author's Note**: Last chapter! I swear, I would literally marry both Rose and the Doctor at the same time. Thank you so much for reading my fanfiction.

* * *

><p>Her breath came quickly. "That's not possible, Doctor." Was it?<p>

"Rose," he countered, laughing in delight. "how many times have we said that, only to have the impossible happen before our eyes? Think about it! It's only logical that you're immortal if you could survive being pulled through dimensions, the Void, and free space to reach the TARDIS. It's the only thing that makes sense."

"But how?" She croaked, her head still spinning from his declaration.

The Doctor shrugged, still grinning. "My guess is that the energy of the Time Vortex bonded with a part of you at some point while you held it in your body. Perhaps, when you used its powers to resurrect Jack, it latched onto your cells, and made you, for lack of a better word, invincible to death."

Rose was silent for a few moments, needing to process. Finally, she muttered, "I-I can't die?"

He shook his head. "Or get older. Physically, anyway."

She sat heavily in the TARDIS's jumpseat. "Then, I can really stay with you? Forever?"

He grinned wider. It was a smile so large that it threatened to split his lips. "If you want to. You may even outlive me, but then you can find Jack. Don't you see? You'll never have to be alone again. And you can see everything change and grow, just like I have! Rose, this is fantastic!"

"But, I can stay here on the TARDIS with you _forever_?" She repeated.

He sobered, "That is, if you want to. You could stay for two forevers if you wanted to."

She stood then and threw her arms around his neck, before slamming her lips against his. He was taken by surprise, and it was a moment before she felt his hands lock around her waist, jerking her tightly against him.

Rose poured every ounce of passion that she had into her kiss, reveling in the feeling of just kissing the Doctor. There was no danger, no ulterior motive. It was just her and the Doctor. Her Doctor. With this kiss, she showed him every moment of pain that accompanied the memories of losing him. She also shared an intense feeling of happiness with him as they realized what their newfound compatibility meant. Kissing him under this circumstance was unlike any kiss that she had ever and would ever experience. For the first time in a long time, she thought of him as alien, because only an alien could share a level of intensity such as this in something so trivial as a kiss.

She gave a tiny laugh between kisses as she realized that she, too, was now alien to some degree. No normal human would ever have the promise of eternal life in the manner that she did. The Doctor laughed to, before gently rejoining their lips.

The Doctor's hands fluttered against her lower back, the intensity of what he felt for her, and she for him nearly overwhelming him. Her soft lips fit against his as if she had been born to kiss only him. Her fingers running gently through his hair brought about a tingling euphoria so powerful that he felt a hot bead of moisture form in the corner of his eye.

She was there, and she would never be gone again. He would never, ever be alone again, because she could stay with him until the end of his days, and he would never have to the bear the pain of watching her age and eventually die. They would be the same, the Doctor and his companion. They would make their mark on history and the universe together. The realization had him grinning against her lips.

After several moments, she pulled back from him, leaning her forehead against his. "Doctor?" She whispered, reverently. Her hands rested on his chest, and she could feel the binary circulatory system that she had missed in every embrace she had received on Pete's world.

"Yes, my dearest Rose?" He answered, his hands stroking her back through the thin cotton material of the dress.

"I love you."

Unlike the day at the beach, and unlike every one of her pretend conversations with her Doctor, her profession of love was not followed by silence.

"Rose Tyler, I will always love you."


End file.
